(a) Technical Field
The present invention relates to a multifunction switch for a vehicle. More particularly, it relates to a multifunction switch for a vehicle in which a user may clearly and intuitively distinguish and recognize a rotating knob on a multifunction switch lever and an operating region of a corresponding rotation knob/mechanism which includes a symbol indicating a manipulating position of the rotating knob and which may enhance visibility that distinguishes respective operating regions of the multifunction switch lever and user convenience thereof.
(b) Background Art
In general, a multifunction switch for a vehicle is coupled with a steering column below a steering wheel and includes a body on which a cancel cam and a horn are mounted. Additionally, switch levers are typically provided to right and left sides of the multifunction switch.
A conventional multifunction switch includes various switches and structures required to drive a vehicle. Some of the principal functions of the multifunction switch include a light switch for turning on interior and exterior lights, a turn signal switch, a wiper switch, a windshield washer fluid switch and an intermittent windshield wiper switch.
FIG. 1 is a view illustrating an example of an existing multifunction switch. As illustrated, a multifunction switch illustratively includes two multifunction switch levers 10 and 20 having a plurality of switches for activating and controlling, for example, lamps/headlights, wipers and a windshield washer fluid spraying function of a vehicle. The multifunction switch also includes a body 30 on which the multifunction switch levers 10 and 20 sit. This body 30 allows the multifunction switch to be coupled with a steering column.
The multifunction switch levers 10 and 20 are classified as a left-side multifunction switch lever 10 having switching functions associated with lighting and a right-side multifunction switch lever 20 having switching functions associated with wiping.
The left-side multifunction switch lever 10 and the right-side multifunction switch lever 20 include pivot levers 11 and 21 rotatably coupled with the body 30 and rotating knobs 12, 13, 22, and 23 rotatably coupled with the pivot levers 11 and 21, respectively, wherein the pivot levers 11 and 21 are rotated about a hinged portion with the body 30 by a user and the rotating knobs 12, 13, 22, and 23 are rotated around the respective levers 10 and 20 by fingers of the user.
A plurality of rotating knobs 12, 13, 22, and 23 may be installed to expand switching functions of the levers 11 and 21 and to rotate at sides and ends of the levers 11 and 21.
The body 30 also includes a plurality of moving contacts and fixed contacts which are connected to switches provided in the multifunction switch levers 10 and 20 and connectors 31 for transmitting signals generated by manipulating the multifunction switch levers 10 and 20 to respective parts of a vehicle.
FIGS. 2A-B is a view illustrating examples of a left-side lever and a right-side lever of the multifunction switch, wherein FIG. 2A shows a left-side multifunction switch lever 10 including switches associated with lighting and FIG. 2B shows the right-side multifunction switch lever 20 including switches associated with wiping.
In particular, the left-side multifunction switch lever 10 is configured to select functions of turning on/off headlamps (low beam and high beam headlamps), turn signal lamps, tail lamps, and fog lamps and an automatic mode (provided to a vehicle to which an automatic light system is applied) by manipulating the pivot lever 11 or the rotating knobs 12 and 13.
As illustrated, the rotating knob of the left-side multifunction switch lever 10 includes an intermittent knob 12 rotated at an intermittent portion of the pivot lever 11 and an end knob 13 coupled with a leading end of the pivot lever 11 and is configured to turn on/off the headlamps (high beam headlamps/low beam headlamps) and to control a projection direction of the headlamps by rotating the end knob 13 and to select the automatic mode ‘AUTO’ of the automatic light system. Furthermore, when the intermittent knob 12 is rotated, the fog lamps (front fog lamps/rear fog lamps) may be turned on/off.
The right-side multifunction switch lever 20 is configured to select functions of turning on/off and controlling of speed of a windshield wiper and of spraying windshield washer fluid by pivoting the pivot lever 21 and rotating the rotating knobs (or mechanisms) 22 and 23.
As illustrated, the right-side multifunction switch lever 20 also includes an intermittent knob 22 rotated an intermittent knob 22 rotated at an intermittent portion of the pivot lever 21 and an end knob 23 coupled with a leading end of the pivot lever 21. The end knob 23 provides switching functions of driving a rear wiper of a rear windshield and spraying windshield washer fluid on a rear windshield glass. The pivot lever 21 and the intermittent knob 22 provide switching functions of controlling the front windshield wipers of a front windshield and spraying windshield washer fluid onto a front windshield glass.
When the pivot lever 21 of the right-side multifunction switch lever 20 is moved forward and rearward (i.e., toward the driver and away from the driver respectively), front and rear washer fluid sprays may be controlled. When the pivot lever 21 is moved upward and downward (i.e., toward the ceiling and toward the floor of the vehicle of the car respectively), the front wipers may be controlled in modes of turning off ‘OFF’, being driven at high speed ‘HI’, low speed ‘LO’, and automatically ‘AUTO’.
The intermittent knob 22 is rotated to control the driving speed of the front windshield wipers and the end knob 23 is rotated to select the functions of turning on ‘ON’, off ‘OFF’, and driving intermittently ‘INT’ the rear windshield wiper.
However, in the multifunction switch, since the levers, that is, the left-side multifunction switch lever 10 and the right-side multifunction switch lever 20 include many switches, the manipulation of the levers can be very difficult and a user may have trouble precisely understanding and using the functions of the respective switches.
As stated above, typical multifunction switch levers have various manipulations such as upward and downward pivoting and forward and rearward pivoting of the pivot levers and rotations of the rotating knobs that are applied to the left-side multifunction switch lever and the right-side multifunction switch lever. However, since many switches are collected into a small multifunction switch lever and the rotating knobs include a plurality of knobs such as the end knobs and the intermittent knobs, the manipulations of the multifunction switch levers can become very complicated to some users.
In practice, user complaints in association with the windshield wipers of a vehicle are mostly about manipulations of the windshield wipers, that is, inconvenience caused by complicated manipulations of the levers described above due to the difficulty of understanding of the multifunction switches rather than wiping performance and attachment/detachment of the windshield wipers.
Moreover, in the multifunction switch on which the intermittent knobs and the end knobs are mounted, it is difficult to distinguish operating regions of the intermittent knobs and the end knobs.
For example, as illustrated in FIG. 2A, although the intermittent knob 12 for operating front and rear fog lamps and the end knob 13 for operating the turning on/off and operating modes of the headlamps are mounted on the left-side multifunction switch lever 10, poor visibility of distinguishing the operating regions of the two knobs, that is, symbols indicating the operating positions has a certain degree of inconvenience and difficulty.
In a vehicle to which a front windshield wipers and a rear windshield wiper are mounted, as illustrated in FIG. 2B, since the intermittent knob 22 for controlling speed of the front windshield wipers and the end knob 23 for operating the rear windshield wiper are mounted on the right-side multifunction switch lever 20, poor visibility of distinguishing the operating regions of the two knobs, that is, symbols indicating the operating positions again has certain degree of inconvenience and difficulty.
Therefore, a multifunction switch in which a user can clearly and easily distinguishing the operating regions of the switches would be greatly beneficial to drivers.